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SELF-ASSESSED HEALTH STATUS

Self-assessed health status is a commonly used measure of overall health which reflects a person's perception of his or her own health at a given point in time. It is a useful measure of a person's current health status, as well as providing a broad picture of a population's overall health.

In 2011-12, over half of all Australians aged 15 years and over considered themselves to be in very good or excellent health (55.1%), while 4.0% rated their health as poor. There was no significant change in the way Australians rated their overall health between 2007-08 and 2011-12.

Older Australians generally rated themselves as having poorer health than younger people, with persons aged 75-84 years and 85 years and over recording the highest proportions of fair or poor health at 31.4% and 37.5% respectively. Men and women showed no differences in the way they assessed their overall health in 2011-12.